Hey, Spike! stamps 'first class' on new postmaster

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If first impressions can be trusted - and they should this time - postal patrons of the Frisco Post Office are going to find Perry L. Fitzgibbon very cordial and service-oriented.

Locals should think back to the level of great service over the decades by postmaster Terry McGeehan, who was followed by wife, Traci. Both took early retirements when they were offered.

On the job for a little more than two weeks, Perry's request for a transfer out from the Midwest is just what he thought it would be.

The Fitzgibbons are moving to The Summit from Newcomerstown, Ohio, the birthplace of Ohio State University's legendary football coach Woody Hayes, and Cy Young, the early day American Major League baseball pitcher for whom the award is named.

Perry started out as a city route carrier in Canton, Ohio, and kept a pace of positive steps up the career ladder.

"I was postmaster in Newcomerstown for 17 years," he says, explaining that he has 36 years actual time in USPS and three more years' government service when he served in the Army's 4th Engineers at Fort Carson.

Perry and Laurie have been married for 36 years. She is an advanced practice nurse who is back in school to become a nurse practitioner. Laurie's dad was born in Limon and she was born in Colorado Springs.

"My wife and I came to Colorado almost every summer," he says. "Now we are going to live here - I cannot think of a better place to be."

They will be calling Silverthorne home.

Perry and Laurie have four kids: Stephanie, married with four kids in Zanesville, Ohio; Megan, married, with a child in Salt Lake City; Matthew, married, with a child in Lafayette; and Braeden, who still resides at the family home in Ohio.

"I love to be outdoors," says the avid photographer, who adds he "enjoys any home remodeling project, and gardening."

Perry dove right in the postmaster workload here and acknowledges his staff of local veterans, Debbie Querrard, Leslie Monroe, Carolyn Kosabucki, Mary Healy and Steven Daniels.

The biggest changes are the drop in USPS First Class mail volume and the adaptations necessary to continue to be a service provider.

Locally, Perry is very aware of the often-troublesome situation arising when renters encounter moving in and attempting to obtain a "free" box in the Frisco Post Office, since there is no route mail delivery in town.

He suggests that landlords update their leases to say that when a lessee moves out they must relinquish the "free" box and notify the postmaster.

If problems are currently being a thorn in your side, landlords should visit, write - or even email - him.

Another cause of ire follows the fact that there is no U.S. Postal Service delivery here and that some out-of-town sellers do not ship to post offices. That is even further complicated when the post office does not accept mail and packages with street addresses.

He suggests putting both the street address and the post office box when explaining the situation to shippers. Someone someplace will sort it out.

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In other social news, Sandi Bruns introduced us to Gordon McKenzie, who was here from his hometown of Coyleton, Scotland.

Up from Arvada the other day were Steve and Jennifer Brauns, who used to live in Bill's Ranch. They are really getting into yoga at a nearby studio, making it nearly a daily routine.

We wish Ricky Amico a happy 60th birthday. We attended his 40th and 50th markings and the most recent.

We chatted with Peter and Alicia Dunn and learned Peter's cousin is Mary Kay McGregor, the house sound engineer for the Eugene O'Neill Theatre, where "Book of Morman" plays.

Alicia was just in the Big Apple with Linda Axelrod and they saw those South Park boys' play and a second, "Kinky Boots," from Cindy Lauper.

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Miles F. Porter IV, nicknamed "Spike," a Coloradan since 1949, is an Army veteran, former Climax miner, graduate of Adams State College, and a local since 1982. An award-winning investigative reporter, he and wife Mary E. Staby owned newspapers here for 20 years.